The Empire Strikes Back
Luke Skywalker trains with Jedi Master Yoda to become a powerful Force user and defeat the Empire, but Darth Vader's relentless pursuit and the Rebel Alliance's dire struggles test his resolve in this high-stakes battle between good and evil.
Synopsis
The epic saga continues as Luke Skywalker, in hopes of defeating the evil Galactic Empire, learns the ways of the Jedi from aging master Yoda. But Darth Vader is more determined than ever to capture Luke. Meanwhile, rebel leader Princess Leia, cocky Han Solo, Chewbacca, and droids C-3PO and R2-D2 are thrown into various stages of capture, betrayal and despair.
Credits
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How many hands made this film
The scale of the collaboration
A crew of 79+ credited
Why a floor?
This is a minimum, not a total. We only count the credits we’ve captured so far, and coverage is uneven — a blockbuster might show a few hundred names while another of the same size shows a couple dozen. The real crews all ran into the thousands. The number here only grows as full credits are enriched — so we frame it as a floor, never a headcount.
Box Office
1980 · Box office
💰 Box-office hit — grossed 30× its budget
Why 2.5×?
Cinemas keep roughly half of every ticket sold, and a wide release’s marketing often costs about as much again as the film — so a movie needs to gross around 2.5× its production budget just to break even theatrically. It’s a rule of thumb, not the studio’s ledger (home video and streaming come later).
Worldwide gross
$538.4M
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Cast & Crew
79 unique people credited
Top billed cast
Mark Hamill
as Luke Skywalker
Harrison Ford
as Han Solo
Carrie Fisher
as Princess Leia
Billy Dee Williams
as Lando Calrissian
Anthony Daniels
as C-3PO
David Prowse
as Darth Vader
Peter Mayhew
as Chewbacca
Kenny Baker
as R2-D2
Frank Oz
as Yoda (Voice)
Alec Guinness
as Obi-Wan Kenobi
Jeremy Bulloch
as Boba Fett
Jason Wingreen
as Boba Fett (voice - uncredited)
Supporting cast
67John Hollis
as Lando's Aide
Jack Purvis
as Chief Ugnaught
Des Webb
as Snow Creature
Kathryn Mullen
as Performing Assistant for Yoda
Marjorie Eaton
as Emperor (uncredited)
Clive Revill
as Emperor (voice)
Kenneth Colley
as Admiral Piett
Julian Glover
as General Veers
Michael Sheard
as Admiral Ozzel
Michael Culver
as Captain Needa
John Dicks
as Captain Lennox
Milton Johns
as Bewil
Mark Jones
as Commander Nemet
Oliver Maguire
as Cabbel
Robin Scobey
as Lieutenant Venka
Bruce Boa
as General Carlist Rieekan
Christopher Malcolm
as Zev Senesca
Denis Lawson
as Wedge Antilles
Richard Oldfield
as Derek "Hobbie" Klivian
John Morton
as Dak Ralter
Ian Liston
as Wes Janson
John Ratzenberger
as Major Derlin
Jack Mckenzie
as Cal Alder
Jerry Harte
as Rebel Force Head Controller
Norman Chancer
as Tamizander Rey
Norwich Duff
as Jeroen Webb
Ray Hassett
as Tigran Jamiro
Brigitte Kahn
as Toryn Farr
Burnell Tucker
as Wyron Serper
Bob Anderson
as Imperial Officer (uncredited)
Lightning Bear
as Stormtrooper (uncredited)
Richard Bonehill
as Stormtrooper / Snowtrooper / Rebel Soldier / ... (uncredited)
John Cannon
as Holographic Imperial Officer (uncredited)
Mark Capri
as Officer M'kae (Captain Needa's Communications Officer) (uncredited)
Martin Dew
as Cloud City Guard (uncredited)
Peter Diamond
as Snowtrooper Gunner (uncredited)
Stuart Fell
as Snowtrooper (uncredited)
Doug Robinson
as Snowtrooper (uncredited)
Tony Smart
as Snowtrooper (uncredited)
Alan Harris
as Bossk / Bespin Security Guard (uncredited)
James Earl Jones
as Darth Vader (voice) (uncredited)
Mac Mcdonald
as Rebel Pilot (uncredited)
Ralph Mcquarrie
as General McQuarrie (uncredited)
Ralph G Morse
as Stormtrooper / Imperial Comms Officer / Rebel Soldier (uncredited)
Terry Richards
as Wampa (uncredited)
Treat Williams
as Echo Base Trooper (uncredited)
Shaun Curry
as Hoth Rebel Commander (uncredited)
Alan Austen
as Stormtrooper/Snowtrooper
Jim Dowdall
as Stormtrooper/Snowtrooper
Tom Egeland
as Hoth Trooper (uncredited)
Alan Flyng
as Stormtrooper (uncredited)
Trevor Butterfield
as Blount / Stormtrooper (uncredited)
Mercedes Burleigh
as Female Hoth Control Room Tech (uncredited)
Jane Busby
as Ugnaught (uncredited)
Maurice Bush
as Dengar (uncredited)
Tony Clarkin
as Stormtrooper (uncredited)
Mike Edmonds
as Ugnaught (uncredited)
Walter Henry
as Rebel Technician on Hoth (uncredited)
Paul Jerricho
as AT-AT Driver (uncredited)
Joe Johnston
as Hoth Rebel (uncredited)
Steven Meek
as Stormtrooper / Chewbacca / Treva Horme / Solomahal (uncredited)
Peter Roy
as Snowtrooper (uncredited)
Stephanie English
as Hoth Rebel Technician (uncredited)
Michael Leader
as Imperial Crewman (uncredited)
Egbert Sen
as Willrow Hood (uncredited)
Elaine Alexander
as Emperor (uncredited)
Colin Hunt
as Snowtrooper (uncredited)
Parents Guide
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